Good is good enough... good is good enough... good is good enough... This is the toughest one yet! And the most important one. One that I work on almost hourly. I am definitely a Type Triple A person. I am a perfectionist, I am detailed-orientated, and I am result-focused! But sometimes, this backfires on me. Actually, most times, it backfires on me. A couple of months ago, I started to really work on what would it feel like if I released my strict parameters, and just only did "good" instead of "great" or "the best". It was very uncomfortable at first. What will other people think of me, I thought? What will my clients think? Guess what? Nobody noticed. Suddenly, I felt freedom like never before! It was such a release of pressure within myself. It felt great! It felt liberating. And ironically, I felt more confident, letting go of the "perfectionist" within me.

This mantra is about letting go. It is kind of a continuation in spirit of last month's mantra. (I came across this one from Shakta Khalsa's book, "The Yoga Way To Radiance").

"The more you struggle against something, the stronger it gets" is very true in a lot of day to day events. We've all been there... somebody cutting you off in traffic, and finding that you are still angry about hours after it happened. But who are you struggling against? The person who cut you off? The universe for unfairly putting this person in front of you? Or are you struggling against yourself? The ego? In most cases, the struggle is within yourself. Do you think the person who cut you off is thinking about what happened? The more attention you give it, the stronger it becomes. But, if you learn to let it go, you will find that these daily annoyances, will get weaker.

Each week, I try to set an intention that I want to work on so that will help me in various parts of my life. These intentions or "mantras" come from both the heart and mind. Once the intention is set, I try to think about it when I find myself in a difficult position or dealing with a challenging person. I also try and meditate to that particular mantra so it can subconsciously be part of my life. (By the way, I am using the word "mantra" very loosely, and in a modern way).

"What other people think of you is none of your business" resonates with me on so many levels. It took me a while to really get it. I was (am probably still am) a 'people pleaser'. Always wanting people to like me; to think that I am a responsible person, and wanting respect from others around me. But guess, what? It's not up to me what others think of me. I can't control anything outside of myself. All I can do is live my life authentically. Do what I believe. Act accordingly. And hope that I am setting a good example around me.